Question should be: Are there priorities?

July 23, 2013

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is spending much of his time these days jetting around the country to spread his woe-is-us message to the Pentagon's civilian workers.

Last week, in a speech to Defense Department employees in Charleston, S.C., Hagel predicted hundreds of thousands will remain on furlough for several months, with massive layoffs on the way.

Hagel blames spending cuts mandated through the "sequester" process.

At first glance, the reductions - averaging about $49 billion a year for the next decade - appear serious. But in the context of more than $700 billion a year in military spending, the question is whether Hagel and others in the Pentagon are taking effective action to deal with the cuts.

Members of Congress should be asking Hagel whether the Pentagon has re-examined its spending priorities, perhaps scrapping some pie-in-the-sky programs to protect essential spending.

We suspect the answer is "no." Until that changes, Hagel should spend less time on the political trail and more in Washington.